There was a vacancy of a dwarf in the circus. Applicants included a six foot
tall young man whose claim to being a dwarf was based on his family history.
His argument was that since he belonged to a family of dwarfs, he had a genuine
right to call himself a dwarf. The manager of the circus had an hearty laugh.
A similar joke is being enacted with all seriousness on the people of India.
The country needs some towering personalities to lead her but all that she
can get are some dwarfs who are trying desperately to prove that they are
not dwarfs but are great men/women.

General Elections to the Parliament are critical for all political creatures
in the Indian political circus. Even before the first vote is cast, selection
of candidates is a difficult test that Indian political parties and leaders pass
through. On one hand, selecting the right candidates is linked to the survival
of the party as a political entity; on the other hand, selection as a
candidate by a party is a matter of political life and death for any person.
Given this sort of pressures, it would seem natural that the political
parties adopt a systematic, democratic, transparent approach towards
candidate selection. The reality is exactly opposite. All Indian political
parties adopt a disorganized, opaque, ad-hoc approach which is based more
on short-term internal group equations rather than on qualities and
capabilities of the candidate.

Indian political circus is dominated by two national parties - Indian
National Congress (called Congress) and Bharatiya Janata Party (called BJP).
Congress has dominated the political scene during the past five decades, having
been in power for more than four decades. Congress had the benefit of stalwarts
like Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi whose towering personality
overshadowed every other person in the party. During the Nehru-Indira era,
the selection of candidates (also called ticket distribution) was centered
in the hands of Nehru/Indira, who kept a vice-like grip on the party
organization throughout the country and had a personal knowledge of the
key persons in each region of the country. Nehru and Indira developed
the ticket distribution exercise as an instrument to strengthen their
grip on the party by rewarding the faithfuls and by punishing those
whose loyalty was suspect. In the hands of exemplary politicians
like Nehru and Indira, the instrument proved to be really effective
in controlling the cadres. This led to development of a model
for selection of candidates, which was adopted not only by
Congress but also by all other political parties in India.
However, in the absence of a strong personality like Nehru
or Indira, the deft handling that characterized the selection
of candidates by the Congress in Nehru-Indira era has been
replaced by a mockery. It almost seems that a classic fascist
drama is being enacted with comical actors.

Selection of candidates for the forthcoming general elections has stirred
a hornet's nest in various parties. Congress seems to be the worst affected
of the lot. Angry scenes have been witnessed at the Congress headquarters
at Delhi, where a Congress worker tried to immolate himself. The rumours
that some senior Congress leaders accepted bribes for helping in procurement
of party tickets has added fuel to fire. In this atmosphere of
dis-satisfaction, mutual distrust and cynicism, the immaturity of
Congress President Sonia Gandhi has aggravated the problems. The
suspense associated with her own constituency and the last minute
mid-air drama of helicopter changing course and her going to Bellary,
Karnataka instead of Cuddapah, Andhra Pradesh has only underscored her
lack of confidence. Such a shaky leader trying to adopt the style
of Nehru and Indira can be a sure recipe for problems.

BJP leadership finds itself in a different set of problems. Atalbihari
Vajpayee, the present Prime Minister, seems to be riding on the crest of a
popularity wave. This has led his party BJP to indulge in daydreaming of
coming back to power with a thumping majority. A day-dreamer's level of
confidence knows no bounds. BJP almost seems to believe that if it puts
up even a lamp-post as a candidate, the lamp-post will win the elections
hands down. With such a mindset, considerations of good-bad,
capable-incapable, popular-unpopular etc. become irrelevant.
Group equations and personal loyalties become the key considerations
and intrigue becomes the order of the day. Talks of internal democracy
and transparency are treated as futile chatter both in BJP and Congress.
BJP is further plagued by its love for old faces that have long ago
ceased to find favour with the people. BJP's internal structures
are so organized that the new faces that come up are generally
the ones that are firmly tied to the apron strings of this or
that senior leader. An exit policy that recognizes death as the
only possible reason for quitting politics coupled with a
disregard of all claims based on talent and capabilities has
often forced capable persons to leave BJP. It is no exaggeration
to say that BJP (and Congress too) faces a severe crunch in
terms of quality persons in its middle and junior level
leadership.

It may well be asked - why should anyone bother about the internal structures
of political parties. Some politicians have often taken the view that no one
has a right to know anything about matters that are internal to their party.
A political party is not a private club established for the benefit of its
members. In a democracy the political parties collectively exercise a monopoly
on the reins of power. It can be said that the political parties are the
trustees of democracy. An erosion of democratic values in the internal
functioning of political parties is an indicator of impending dangers
to democracy. Society expects political parties to act as nurseries for
the future rulers of the society. It is the duty of political parties
to identify, nurture and develop talent for this purpose and to present
the best possible alternatives to the people. If the political parties
fail in this duty and present candidates who are incapable, dishonest,
corrupt or unpopular, the political parties lose their credibility
and their moral right to act as nurseries for future rulers of the
country. Such a situation will naturally lead to the weakening of
democracy. The fall in credibility of Indian political parties
witnessed during the past few years should hence cause worries
to all persons who are concerned about growth of democracy on
the surface of earth.

In no other major democratic country in the world, the elected representatives
are made puppets of the party bosses, the way that it is done in India. There
exists legislation to grant statutory power to the whips issued by party bosses
to party legislators and parliamentarians. In the absence of internal democracy
within political parties, this reduces the democratic setup to a "whipocracy".
Combining this with an ad-hoc and opaque system of selection of candidates
by the political parties, "whipocracy" seems to be nothing but nascent
fascism.

Selection of candidates by political parties is neither just an issue related
to the political career of some aspirants nor is it an exercise to increase the
intra-party strength of some political lords. It is an exercise that decides
the future of the country as well as the future of democracy in the country.
Hence, if democracy has to flourish in India, the political parties of India
must change their ways and adopt selection procedures that are transparent
and are based on objective assessment of capabilities. Indian political
leaders must realize that their existence as well the existence of
democracy in India depends on their shedding the Nehru-Indira mentality
of treating the party as their personal fiefdom. It is essential that
they start looking at political parties as social institutions created
in the interest of society and nation.

Needless to say that this sort of outlook would require persons who can rise
above petty self-interest and look at society, nation and the world at large.
Isn't that what being great is all about? India needs such great leaders and
not dwarfs who are using all sorts of props to convey an impression of
greatness. The manager of the circus could laugh at the six foot dwarf but
for the people of India, dwarfs masquerading as great leaders is no laughing
matter. They must choose one of the alternatives presented.

VT JOSHI (1925-2008) worked for more than fifty years as a journalist. He retired
from THE TIMES OF INDIA in 1989. During 1985-89 he was the Special Correspondent of
THE TIMES OF INDIA in Pakistan. His books "PAKISTAN: ZIA TO BENAZIR" and
"INDIA AT CROSS ROADS" (co-author GG Puri) were widely reviewed in both India
and Pakistan.

ANIL CHAWLA is an engineer by qualification but
a philosopher by vocation and a management consultant by profession.